


No Shepard Without Vakarian

by Quasar_Script



Category: Mass Effect
Genre: BioWare, F/M, FemShep - Freeform, Garrus Vakarian - Freeform, Mass Effect - Freeform, Mass Effect 2, Mass Effect 3, No Shepard without Vakarian
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-11-01
Updated: 2014-11-01
Packaged: 2018-02-23 13:14:45
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,034
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2548781
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Quasar_Script/pseuds/Quasar_Script
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>About a decade ago, Urdnot Blood,a krogan engineer, found a girl without a left leg and slowly bleeding to death and took her to his asari bondmate named Riasa to be healed. With the wounds treated, the asari alchemist soon discovered that the young girl had an immune system like a quarian and gave her a mask to stop alien bacteria from invading her weak body. The krogan then created a artificial leg for the disable girl as he saw her as weak and taught her how to fight like a krogan while Riasa taught the girl Alchemy, a different type of biotic that required equivalent exchange. Years later, Captain Grace Ambrose forces a shady girl code named Shadow to join SSV Nightingale, the sister ship of the Normandy, along with a krogan engineer and an asari scientist. Not much is known about the masked girl apart from her deadly accurate aim and stealth.</p>
<p>But suddenly, Commander Ransa Shepard takes an interest in Shadow and sets out to find the mysterious girl to ask her to join the Normandy, much to Ambrose's displeasure.</p>
            </blockquote>





	No Shepard Without Vakarian

**Author's Note:**

> This probably goes without saying but I do not own Mass Effect nor any of the characters; all rights go to Bioware. I also don't know Fullmetal Alchemist which I based the Alchemy in this fanfiction from.

"Shadow, mechanic and sniper of the SSV Nightingale. Specialises in stealth, mechanics, sniper rifles and alchemy, mostly uses a modified sniper she created herself. The most noticeable feature is. . . Well, nothing; she seems to naturally blend into her surroundings. She wears a gas mask and goggles that hides her real face. Often wears a hood that hides the rest of her head. Past unknown. Age unknown. Real name unknown. Captain Grace Ambrose of the Nightingale suddenly recruited her with a krogan and asari three years ago. Is she the one the Alliance wants, Commander?" Joker raised an eyebrow at the monitor in the bridge before looking up to the man with sharp, high cheekbones and a very defined jawline behind him who had his robust arms crossed over his chest.  
"What the Alliance wants doesn't matter. I need her on the Normandy," the tall golden eyed male shook his head before running a hand over his shaven scalp to feel the sharpness of the minuscule dark hairs and run his rough fingertips along the long scar that started on his forehead and stopped a little past his hairline. The brittle boned pilot smirked and chuckled at his commander's comment.  
"Renegade as always, sir. The Nightingale is currently on a mission on Virmire at moment."  
"What type of mission?" Shepard questioned, only just hearing of this mission. Joker typed something on the glowing keyboard to get more information but the orange screen flashed red as a toneless voice said 'access restricted'.  
"Shit, it seems the Alliance doesn't want us knowing," the pilot muttered, throwing up his hands in defeat.  
"Or Ambrose doesn't. . ." Shepard mumbled under his breath as he turned away to walk towards the CIC. "Take us there Joker."

"No! Blood, please don't!" A desperate voice sliced through the silence of the Nightingale which was followed by very heavy footsteps that could only be a very pissed off krogan. These sounds traveled down the elevator to the cargo bay where a hooded figure worked on the damaged mako in which was blissful silence to her. The navy skinned varren with a cream coloured belly raised its head beside her and looked in the direction of the commotion before wagging its tail.  
"I warned you human," Blood's enraged voice shortly accompanied the navigator's pleads before the sandy-blonde human ran into the mess room where the working mechanic presumed the mess hall because of the third voice that joined in on the chaos.  
"Be silent, I am trying to work!" The third voice was of the asari scientist was stationed in her own lab near the mess hall before the navigator interrupted her.  
"But I'm so proud of my beautiful girls!" Jackson Holt replied in an annoying swooning voice which her always used when he showed people the picture of his wife and two young daughters. -- a voice and picture that all the crew on the Nightingale were all too familiar with. A crash and a soft thud shortly followed the voice that made the masked sniper shake her head slightly before she typed something on the glowing keypad of her Omni-pad to check her work and sighed at knowing of what was next.  
"Krogan head butt!!" Jackson's pained scream rang out after another thud that was also too familiar to the Nightingale crew; a krogan's head meeting someone else's. Sighing again, the petite girl rearranged the gas mask and goggles on her face in a more comfortable fashion and patted the varren's head in affection as their captain spoke to them via the comm in the bridge beside the pilot, May Day -- a name that the crew found ironic for a pilot.  
"Holt, stop showing people the picture of your family. Blood, stop head butting people. Riasa, get back to work. We are nearing our rendezvous point so get ready," the red headed human finished her orders for the krogan and sniper to get prepare for their upcoming mission. Captain Grace Ambrose was the commanding officer of the SSV Nightingale and was known for her ruthlessness on and off the battlefield. She was easy to spot in a crowded room because of her vibrant crimson hair that was generally tied in a high ponytail with very few strands of red falling into her bright green eyes and freckled cheeks. The young mechanic mentally groaned at the thought of changing out of her comfortable black hoodie and grey camouflage trousers but complied anyway.

It did not take long for the trio to change as Jackson returned to the CIC room with a fresh bandage wrapped around his head after he visited the medical room to be treated by Doctor Engel and now was getting ready for the captain to leave who was slipping on her white gauntlet of her monochrome standard armour which made the flare of red from her hair more noticeable. The krogan didn't change as he felt more comfortable and safe always wearing his heavy blood red armour that matched the colour of X birth mark across his face, hence the name Blood. Urdnot Blood was taller and stronger than most krogan and more intelligent. He had dark grey skin with a carmine face plate where the black crossed birthmark was situated. Like any krogan, he had battle scars all over his body though most where on his slightly exposed neck.  
"Shadow, are you ready yet?" Ambrose turned to the much smaller girl behind her who was struggling with her right thigh length boot. She still wore the ancient metallic mask but in place of her hoodie was a black hooded robe with a golden trim and a tail coat styled robe attached on her waist. The sleeves of the robe were too long at the end so her hands her surrounded by more cloth -- the ends of her sleeves curved with her hands and slightly pointed at her knuckled and had two golden lines at the bottom. The krogan stepped to help the young human in balancing and stopping her from falling by placing a huge hand on the engineer's back. With the task done, the masked girl nodded before picking up her sniper rifle and strapping it on her back with Blood's help again. "Right, now let's move out."  
The varren rubbed his head against the sniper's hand and whimpered causing the girl to look down at her dog like alien and bend down to its level before petting its head and bumping heads with it.  
"Stay here, Inu-chan*," Shadow ordered the still whimpering varren as she stood up and nudged its head towards the opposite door for it to leave.  
"Let's bring bloodshed," the abnormally tall krogan smirked while pounding his fist into his other hand as the spacecraft's door slipped open after equalising the pressure.  
"Welcome to Virmire, a lush frontier world that's perfect for vacations and the occasional pirate or slaver attack," May spoke through the comm as the trio stepped out on the indeed lush surroundings. The scout watched through the dark glass of her mask as her feet sunk slightly in the warm sand before bending down to pick up some. Letting it slip through her fingers, she silently cursed the black gloves covering her small hands at restricting the warmth of the sand spreading into her skin.  
"Young krantt, it would be wise if you follow now," Blood called back to the still crouching sniper in front of the dark purple ship. Shadow wiped her hand on her grey robe and looked up to see the rest of her team already receding into the shallow, crystal blue waters.  
"Shadow, where are the slavers positioned?" The redhead checked both of her pistols as a single strand of crimson fell into her green eyes. The scout assessed one of the white rock mounts as she tried to decide whether it was the best vantage point.  
"Need to get there," the girl said in a half sentence as she pointed to the thick foliage on the top. The captain averted her eyes from her guns to where her mechanic was pointing and nodding.  
"Blood," she simply ordered with a jerk of her head before she opened her own Omni-tool to check on the information about the slavers attacking this tranquil planet as the two engineers made their way up the craggy hill.

"How many?" Blood sat on a single flat rock which was shaded by the tall thick trees over the duo. Shadow had quickly set up her sniper rifle so the scope and barrel couldn't be seen in the dark shrubbery. The young sniper scanned the open scenery with ease before she spotted faint movement to the south of them.  
". . . About six krogans outside," she muttered while zooming in with the visor she built into her mask on that particular area to get more info. "Mercenaries." The krogan next to her nodded.  
"God knows how many inside," Blood smirked again and he leaned back so all his massive weight was on his hands to look up at the bright blue sky above them which peaked through the dense leaves that loomed above them.  
"Six klicks South from here," the masked girl slowly pulled the scope away from the glass of her mask to stand up next to the grey skinned krogan who still had a bloodthirsty grin on his painted face.  
"Let's go then."

The trio trekked through the low water towards the small compound where the sniper had spotted the krogan mercenaries. Shadow followed the huge bulk of krogan who sensed the nervous scent radiating from their captain as she raised her hand for them to stop.  
"What is it, Ambrose?" Blood whispered gruffly, not appreciating the fact that she was prolonging the time until his killing spree.  
"Shadow, scout out ahead while we stay here," Ambrose ordered while scanning the small beach around them, trying to find any hostiles. The krogan growled lowly as he narrowed his blue eyes at the puny human in front of him, hating the feeling of sending a punier human ahead but stayed silent while Shadow slinked off into the shadows. Now alone with the woman he despised, Blood grabbed Ambrose by her shoulder to turn her body to face his.  
"What's with sending a girl into battle first? Have you no honour?" He snarled, bending down to stare into Ambrose's light green eyes. She simply sighed at the confrontation as if she expected it and placed a hand on the krogan's large one to try and pry it off.  
"We need to know what we're up against, also Shadow has no honour so keep that shit to yourself, krogan 'warrior'," Ambrose sneered back with equal hostility as the girl mentioned emerged from the darkness of the huge shadow cast from rock beside them. "Status report, Shadow."  
". . ." Shadow stared at the position of her crewmen were in before tilting her head to the side at the looming krogan for answers.  
"Er. . . N-nothing happened, krantt," Blood quickly explained while he removed his hand off the red headed woman.  
"Guard, six krogan. Look out, a batarian. Inside, about three asari," the hooded girl gave her report, lightly stamping her right foot in the untouched golden sand which made a deeper mark than it should have. The Nightingale's commanding officer nodded while cupping her freckled chin between her thumb and forefinger.  
"What are asari doing here?" Blood thought out loud, scratching the softer skin between his head crest plate and armour.  
"They must be involved with the slavery," Ambrose stated, frowning at the three blue woman.  
"Obviously," the Urdnot tutted, rolling his light blue eyes in annoyance. Ambrose gave him a death glare before taking out both of her pistols and taking cover behind one of the random crates scattered on the small beach. Shadow ran off into the darkness again to find a sniper post to look over her two comrades as Blood loaded his shotgun and preparing for Shadow to take the first shots. Seconds later, the batarian had a bullet lodged between his many sets of eyes and five of the krogans fell to the ground and shortly followed by the three asari, all dead without a sound. The startled lone krogan stared at his fallen comrades before aiming his gun to his unknown assailant to be greeted by another bullet when the sniper had finished reloading.  
"That was easy," Ambrose peaked over her crate to scan the fresh corpses and to ensure no more enemies charged out before standing up, believing that the coast was clear.  
"Get down!" Shadow yelled down the comm as shots roared through the air again, several clipping Ambrose before she could duck under her cover but none effected her because of her strong shields the engineers had created for her. Geth crawled out from the compound, all shooting at the human and krogan's position.  
"What the hell are geth doing here?!" Blood boomed as he blasted the heads off two white Geth Troopers that were closing in but soon their bullets didn't make a difference to the growing number of various geth being to surround them.  
"We're pinned down! Shadow if you don't do anything now we'll die!" Ambrose shouted down her comm to her hiding sniper who wasn't covering them to their surprise. The krogan who had undying faith in the girl kept firing at the geth, his loyalty never wavering despite what the woman beside him was saying. He paused when he noticed that one of the Geth Armature ready themselves to fire but wasn't aiming at him.  
"Shit!" Blood yelled out one of the curses he learned from humans on the Nightingale and his time on Earth when he realised where it was aiming but before he could do anything it fire in its desired direction. Ambrose gritted her teeth when watched Shadow's sniper point explode into pieces by the Geth Armature. Blood ceased his fire and gaped at the rising smoke where his krantt was stationed. Before Ambrose could retain him, the krogan sprinted towards the small twisted and blacken forest but halted when he noticed two figures emerging from the choking thick smoke.  
"Shadow?" The grey krogan narrowed his eyes to try and focus on the two enlarging silhouettes embarking towards him. The larger one, which Blood recognised to be male, carrying the other over his shoulders. As they drew closer, Blood instantly ran to to meet them when he noticed the smaller figure to be none other than his trusted krantt. Blood didn't bother to look at the onyx armoured male in detail as took the unconscious human away from him to check her faint but stubborn heartbeat which made the krogan let out a long breath in relief.  
"Thank you. Thank you so much, stranger," Blood uncharacteristically thanked the man who had bend down next to him to give the krogan time to finally scrutinise him. From what he could tell, the new comer was human from the Alliance and trained in N7, which his onyx armour stated. "An Alliance soldier?"  
The N7 armour barer nodded before taking off his full headed helmet to reveal his shaved head and high cheekbones. The krogan's slitted eyes widen when he noticed the molten gold eyes staring back at him - the very same gold his krantt bared when he found her all those years ago before Riasa had given her the mask that keeps alien bacteria from entering her lungs.  
"Ransa Shepard, commanding officer of the SSV Normandy," the commander introduced himself holding out a hand for the krogan to take which he did, still grateful for him saving his krantt.  
"Urdnot Blood, krogan engineer," Blood gave the smaller man a grin as he was quickly reminded where he was by a high pitched shriek from the person he hated the most.  
"Goddamn it, Blood. Don't get distracted, there's still a hell of a lot more geth to kill," the Nightingale's commander stayed in her position behind her cover which was under heavy fire from the still advancing geth.  
"You don't seem surprised to see geth outside the veil, Shepard," Blood said while the two males ran to a position behind a steel crate.  
"They attacked Eden Prime not so long ago," Shepard explained, taking out his assault rifle and killing the closing in geth. "I'll explain later," he added on when he noticed Blood's surprised expression. "Alenko, bring the Mako round. We're going to need more fire power."  
The distant hum of an engine broke through the gunfire and soon more shots were added in on the chaotic scene as the military tank like vehicle bounded over the corner and smited the rest of the geth in a matter of seconds. In the krogan's arms, the sniper coughed and stirred from the familiar sound of the Mako while tightening her meek grip on her treasured weapon. Blood shifted his cat-like eyes to the spluttering girl and pulled her up in a sitting position to pat her back.  
"Korbal*," Shadow muttered from under her mask when she caught her breath making the krogan grin proudly.  
"Damn right. Korbal," Blood chuckled as the last geth fell to the floor. Ambrose slid onto the sand from exhaustion and rolled her head to the side to watch Shadow checking her sniper rifle before moving her intense emerald iris to the only human male that was also looking down at the sniper.  
"What the hell are you doing here?" The red headed woman squinted her eyes in suspicion at Shepard's sudden presence.  
"Saving your ass," Shepard retorted with equal hostility as he stood up, placing his heavy gun on his back so he was empty handed.  
"That's not what I mean. Why are you here?" She snarled also holstering her weapons as she stood and moved so she squared up to the slightly taller man. "This is my mission," she added on, displeased with her authority being forgotten. Shepard disregarded Ambrose and her poor attempt for intimidation to look down at the still sitting girl that sparked his interest as he placed a scarred hand on her hooded head making her jump slightly and the sudden physical contact.  
"I'm here to recruit this shadow."

**Author's Note:**

> *Inu-chan - Inu is dog in Japanese and chan is a Japanese honorific when someone finds something cute or adding it to the end of the name of a girl they like, friendly and romantically.  
> **Korbal - krogan word roughly translated as 'victory or death'.
> 
> MORE TO COME


End file.
